“The Greatest Lesson … Taught Today”

In the 1980s Congolese living abroad began joining the Church in France, England, and Switzerland. Although there were no Church units in the Republic of the Congo, members including Hyacinthe Massamba-Sita, Jean Patrice Milembolo, Alphonse Bonoua, and others had returned to their native land, where some felt isolated as they waited for the Church to be officially organized in the country. “My personal dream is to see our [Church] become established in the Congo,” wrote Bonoua to Church headquarters in 1986. Over the next four years these scattered Saints practiced and shared their faith, which led to others reaching out to Church headquarters for opportunities to learn more.

The waiting came to an end when missionaries first arrived on December 20, 1990. Massamba-Sita, who had been praying that morning for the Church to come, was overjoyed to meet Scott and Lou Ciel Taggart, who were presiding over the Zaire Kinshasa Mission and had come to set the work in motion in the Republic of the Congo. “It was like he’d seen heaven,” Sister Taggart later said of Massamba-Sita’s reaction. The next month during a visit with the Massamba-Sita family at their home in Brazzaville, President Taggart set Massamba-Sita apart as the group leader in Brazzaville and authorized him to search out other Church members living in the Congo.

Jean Patrice Milembolo had met the missionaries in 1985 while studying in France. “I was interested in what [the missionaries] taught regarding our origins and our future,” he recalled. “At the beginning, my approach [to the gospel] was purely intellectual. … But my spirit was finally touched.” Pelagie, Jean Patrice’s wife, learned about the Church during visits to France while Jean Patrice was living there. “This Church doesn’t even exist in [the Congo],” she said. “Why should I get baptized?” As his schooling was ending, Jean Patrice was also confused about how to practice his faith after returning home. “What will become of me when I go back to the Congo?” he asked himself.

Jean Patrice arrived in the Congo in 1991, at just the right time to meet President Taggart, Hyacinthe Massamba-Sita, and other Church members who were working to organize a branch. In June, Jean Patrice was called as the president of the Makelekele Branch, the first official branch in the country. Four months later, the Church was officially recognized by the Republic of the Congo.

Despite frequent civil unrest, the Church grew rapidly. In 2003 the first stake was organized, with Jean Patrice as president. After the sustaining, Jean Patrice and Pelagie were invited to bear their testimonies. Jean Patrice asked Pelagie to stand beside him at the pulpit, and he placed his arm around her shoulders. Jean Patrice spoke of his great love and appreciation for Pelagie’s support in his Church callings, a public expression of respect that made an impression on many. Scott G. Waldram, president of the Democratic Republic of the Congo Mission remarked, “That is the greatest lesson that will be taught today.”